THE GREAT HORNED OWL 307 



up his axe, started for home, keeping an eye on 

 the bird as he went. He had not gone far before 

 the owl arose, took flight, and alighted upon a 

 tree a few yards ahead of him, watching his ap- 

 proach. 



This was getting serious. The old man vowed 

 to pray for the lost soul ; and hurried his steps. 

 As he passed under the tree where the owl was 

 sitting, it swooped down upon him. Bilodeau, 

 who had partly expected to be attacked by this 

 evil spirit, had his axe ready, and with a stroke 

 of its sharp edge, he cut it down, and leaving both 

 axe and bird there, ran home. He could never be 

 persuaded to use that axe again, it being stained 

 with the blood of the loup garou, which he had 

 delivered from bondage. The belief which he 

 shared was that for some misdeed such souls are 

 condemned to wander under different forms until 

 delivered by a second death. 



The old gentleman always dressed in the old- 

 fashioned style of grey homespun, etoffe du pays, 

 and wore that morning a cap made of muskrat 

 fur, which was probably the cause of the attack. 



The second instance above referred to occurred 

 at Manicouagan, and I obtained the particulars 

 of it from the man himself who had been attack- 

 ed, a trapper named Thibeau. He said he was 

 leturning to his camp one evening just about dusk 

 with a red fox slung over his shoulders. It 

 was blowing a gale of east wind with snow, and 



